At least 56 dead in Uttar Pradesh as rivers rise, 12 killed in Nepal
Heavy rainfall and related landslides have killed at least 56 people in India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, and at least 12 people in neighbouring Nepal, officials and media reports said.
Uttar Pradesh’s relief commissioner, Hrishikesh Bhaskar Yashod, told reporters that rainfall totalled 66.5mm in the state from Friday to Sunday morning, compared with a normal 7.6mm for the same period. The commissioner’s office said the deaths, and 46 injuries, were reported during a spell of “exceptionally heavy rain” that affected much of the state, Al Jazeera reported.
Authorities said that more than 1,000 houses were damaged when a depression over the Bay of Bengal moved inland and intensified rainfall across the region. The Central Water Commission told reporters that 30 river-monitoring stations across seven states were in a “severe situation”, with several major rivers including the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati and Narmada rising above danger levels, the report said.
In eastern India, the NDTV news network reported that heavy downpours forced the evacuation of more than 70,000 people living in low-lying areas of Odisha after rivers rose. The rains also damaged bridges and culverts and led to the closure of Devkund, a popular tourist spot in the state, the report said.
In Nepal, officials said at least 12 people have been killed by a new wave of flooding and landslides since Thursday. According to earlier reports cited by Al Jazeera, the country is still recovering from a devastating flood in late August that killed more than 1,400 people and left thousands missing.
Authorities warned that possible flash floods could occur in 49 of Nepal’s 77 districts, saying more than half of the country faced a high risk of flooding or flash flooding as water levels in major rivers and tributaries continued to rise.
The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation said that power supplies had been disrupted in the Manang, Mustang, Myagdi and Baglung districts, and that officials were working to restore electricity. Water Resources and Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha told reporters that flooding of the Rahuganga River damaged the structure and transmission-line towers of a 40-megawatt hydropower project.
Shanti Mahat, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said that Rasuwa and Nuwakot, areas hit by the August floods, should remain “alert” but were not currently considered high-risk, the report added.
A photograph that circulated with the report showed people salvaging items from sludge beside deluged houses in Nepal’s Nuwakot district after recent flooding, AFP via Al Jazeera captioned the image.
Outlook
Officials have urged residents in low-lying and riverbank areas to remain vigilant as river levels continue to be monitored. Rescue and relief operations are ongoing in affected districts in both countries, according to the reports.
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